Guardians of the Galaxy • 2014

[Thundercracker]

"They call themselves the Guardians of the Galaxy." - "What a bunch of A-holes."

Release Date: August 1, 2014

Director: James Gunn

Screenplay: James Gunn & Nicole Perlman

Cast:
Chris Pratt - Peter Quill / Star-Lord
Zoe Saldana - Gamora
Dave Bautista - Drax the Destroyer
Bradley Cooper - Voice of Rocket Raccoon
Vin Diesel - Voice of Groot
Lee Pace - Ronan the Accuser
Djimon Hounsou - Korath the Pursuer
Michael Rooker - Yondu
Karen Gillan - Nebula
Benicio del Toro - The Collector
John C. Reilly - Rhomann Dey
Glenn Close - Nova Prime Irani Rael
Josh Brolin - Thanos


Official Synopsis:

From Marvel, the studio that brought you the global blockbuster franchises of Iron Man, Thor, Captain America and The Avengers, comes a new team–the Guardians of the Galaxy. An action-packed, epic space adventure, Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy expands the Marvel Cinematic Universe into the cosmos, where brash adventurer Peter Quill finds himself the object of an unrelenting bounty hunt after stealing a mysterious orb coveted by Ronan, a powerful villain with ambitions that threaten the entire universe. To evade the ever-persistent Ronan, Quill is forced into an uneasy truce with a quartet of disparate misfits–Rocket, a gun-toting raccoon, Groot, a tree-like humanoid, the deadly and enigmatic Gamora and the revenge-driven Drax the Destroyer. But when Peter discovers the true power of the orb and the menace it poses to the cosmos, he must do his best to rally his ragtag rivals for a last, desperate stand - with the galaxy’s fate in the balance.


Concept Art:









Costumes & Props:






Comic-con footage description:
source: io9
[spoil][align=left]Considering Marvel's huge space opera only started filming 10 days ago, they had an amazing amount of footage to show us. We see a desolate alien world, where Peter Quill, aka Starlord, is going inside an ancient temple. He uses a light globe to illuminate the interior, and then goes to steal an old alien orb.

Some alien cops come in with big guns to stop him. "Drop it now," orders their leader, Borath (Djimon Hounsou). And he asks Quill who he is. "Starlord," he replies. "Who?" Borath asks. "Starlord, man. Legendary outlaw." Starlord is wounded. "Forget it."

Then we see someone activate a wrist transceiver, and we're in an alien prison, where five creatures have been arrested on Zandar. We see holographic "rapsheets" for all five of them — Drax the Destoryer, Gamora (Zoe Saldana), a personal death machine, Rocket Raccoon, who has over 50 charges of vehicular theft and escape from lockup, Groot, a houseplant/muscle, and then Starlord himself.

Rhomann Dey (John C. Reilly) narrates the whole thing with intense snark, especially when he gets to the part about how Peter Quill calls himself Starlord. Listening to this, Quill cranks up his middle finger as if he's working a creaky machine. Later, Quill is in prison and Drax is listening to his personal stereo, which is playing a bouncy "gamba gamba" tune. Quill is offended — and then he gets tased.

And then we saw a montage of tons of action footage, including a two-headed alien shooting a gun, a prison riot, tons of Gamora putting the smackdown on people, Rocket Raccoon shooting a big gun with a vicious look on his face.

The footage ends with John C. Reilly saying, "They call themselves the Guardians of the Galaxy. What a bunch of A-holes." And we see the five of them lined up, like the Usual Suspects.[/align][/spoil]

Another Comic-con footage description:
[spoil][align=left]"We arrested these five on Xandar," Rhomann Dey (John C Reilly) told his Nova Corps superior, played by Peter Serafinowicz. "Check out the rap sheets. Drax aka The Destroyer. He's killed scores of Ronan [the Accuser]'s lieutenants in his search for vengeance." We see Drax standing, cuffed, in some kind of line-up room/observational thing... except super sci-fi'd with electric windows and all that jazz.

Rhomann Dey continued, "Gamora, Thanos' adopted daughter... her own personal death machine." And we see a green-skinned Zoe Saldana standing like she doesn't give a [frick]. Then it cuts to a little furry guy standing on a box in the observation room and the audience went apeshit. I couldn't hear what John C. Reilly was saying, but he did say "Rocket Raccoon" and "over 50 charges of vehicular theft and escape from lockup." Rocket looks annoyed and kind of exhales loudly, and spits on the ground.

Then it cuts to a tall figure standing in the observation room. So tall in fact that we don't see his head. Looks like someone just planted a tree in the room... until it moves, ducking down to look through the window so we see his face. "Groot." Reilly: "houseplant/muscle."

Now it's back to Pratt. "Peter Jason Quill. He's also known as Star-Lord." Deputy, "Who calls him that?" "Himself, mostly. "He's wanted for minor theft, avoiding prosecution, fraud..." As Reilly is reading off the charges, Pratt is doing that turn-the-crank-jack-in-the-box middle finger thing, then acting all innocent. "I'm sorry! I didn't know how this machine worked!" The way Pratt sold that moment killed the audience. So funny.

The rest of the footage was more montage style, beginning with Pratt being led through alien jail. He sees a big blue brute guy (mostly make-up and practically executed) picks up a pair of headphones. Blue Swede's Hooked On A Feelin' can be heard coming from them. "Hey, hey, hey! That's mine!" The alien prisoner defiantly puts them on his head. Quill breaks free, hands still cuffed, and chases after him. "Come here, you big blue bastard! Take that off your head right now!" And he tackles the big guy. [/align][/spoil]

[Thundercracker]

Get it while it's hot! Leaked footage from comic-con:

[spoil][flash width=440 height=420]http://v5.tinypic.com/player.swf?file=25s36s8&s=5[/flash]
[flash width=440 height=420]http://v5.tinypic.com/player.swf?file=zlrtyr&s=5[/flash]
[flash width=440 height=420]http://v5.tinypic.com/player.swf?file=znqw6d&s=5[/flash]
[/spoil]


Pretty amazing they were able to assemble something like this considering filming had started only a few weeks prior to comic-con.



Clear shot of Peter Quill from the prisoner line-up scene:

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't know how this machine worked."

[TroyObliX]

I have high hopes for this one, and by the looks of it I won't be disappointed.

Thanks for sharing all this goodness!!

[Thundercracker]

No prob, Troy. I had reservations about this one when it was first announced because it seemed like such a risky and tough property to try and adapt for the big screen. However, I'm really liking what's been revealed so far and I am getting pretty excited for this one. Can't wait to see an official trailer.


Lot's of new set pics of Michael Rooker as Yondu:








Interview excerpts from Kevin Fiege on GotG:
source: Empire Magazine

"They are an unlikely band. It's pure circumstance that brings them all together throughout the course of the movie. Rocket has been genetically and mechanically altered, he's an experiment from one part of the galaxy. Groot is a species that happens to look like trees look, and is quite communicative if you can understand the different inflections in the way he says, "I am Groot." Peter Quill left Earth in the mid'80s, but when we meet back up with him he's very much a citizen of the universe. Drax has one goal and one goal only, which is to kill Ronan because of a past tragedy. When we meet Gamora, she's a bad guy working with Ronan and Nebula and Korath, and by extension for Thanos. Gamora doesn't necessarily like doing that anymore, and tries to find a new path for herself. But she has a reputation as the deadliest woman in the galaxy that people aren't greeting her with open arms."

"The general answer is yes," Kevin Feige said when asked whether Guardians of the Galaxy takes place at the same time as Marvel's other "Phase Two" movies, Iron Man 3, Thor: The Dark World and Captain America: The Winter Soldier. "It's not exactly revealed what year or month it is in relation to the other Phase Two films. But yes, it's the same time." So, while it may take place at the same time, just how connected will it be to the aforementioned films? "Certainly more than the others. We've already said that Thanos plays a part in it and is a character in it. That in and of itself should tell you it's connected to the other worlds." Talking of Thanos, many fans expected the Mad Titan to be the main villain in the sequel to The Avengers, but it was recently confirmed that it will be Ultron who fills that role. So, will he be the main foe in Guardians of the Galaxy? Not quite! "Ronan The Accuser is very much the main bad guy. And Thanos is lurking above it all. You will learn more about Thanos in Guardians, for sure. Certainly you'll get more than the one turn around and smirk. You'll get much more than that!"

[Thundercracker]

Official still of the group line-up (first shown at SDCC'13):

[The_Somnambulist]

I'm generally not a fan of these Marvel films but this one looks too bizarre to ignore.

Any word on an upcoming trailer drop?

[Thundercracker]

There's been rumors that there might be something shown during the Super Bowl. If not then maybe by the time Cap 2 comes out.

[Bandersnatch]

Badass green skin chick with red hair and a racoon.

I don't know what this is, but fuck yes I'm in.

[SI]

At this point it is my most anticipated movie of 2014 along with Hobbit 3.

[Thundercracker]

Leaked CGI test footage gifs:

[Thundercracker]

Everything's a bit more awesome in Lego form:

[Thundercracker]

First HD stills from tomorrow's Teaser Trailer! (The trailer will debut on the Tonight Show then online afterwards.)

[Cryostar]

Nope.....Zoe looks horrible

[Chostomo]

Trailer's up

[Thundercracker]

Pretty much an updated version of the SDCC footage, they even kept the Hooked On A Feeling music. Nothing too jaw dropping but it's nice to finally see it in clear quality. Kinda underwhelming upon first viewing but I'm digging it more with each rewatch.

Nope.....Zoe looks horrible

Just wondering, what exactly looks horrible about her?

[CoGro]

It has my attention. Very ballsy picture for Marvel to make. Curious why they brought on a director who hasn't produced any watchable material.

I hope it pays off.

[Bandersnatch]

This looks awesome.

[Thundercracker]

Mini-Featurettes introducing each character: Rocket's voice heard for first time! Marvel's striking the iron while it's hot!

[flash width=560 height=315]http://www.youtube.com/v/6nyddEhXSvA?version=3&hl=en_US[/flash]

[flash width=560 height=315]http://www.youtube.com/v/O9z04zXq7jk?hl=en_US&version=3[/flash]

[flash width=560 height=315]http://www.youtube.com/v/q104YhObyV0?version=3&hl=en_US[/flash]

[flash width=560 height=315]http://www.youtube.com/v/4Rf2a8zBrM4?version=3&hl=en_US[/flash]

[flash width=560 height=315]http://www.youtube.com/v/b3H9zLGkGlY?hl=en_US&version=3[/flash]

[Thundercracker]

And here's the Teaser Poster:

[Topeka]

As a Marvel outsider (and someone who has not gushed over the previous films) this looks weird enough to be awesome. I don't know who any of these guys are but they're doing some outstanding marketing.

[Cryostar]

Pretty much an updated version of the SDCC footage, they even kept the Hooked On A Feeling music. Nothing too jaw dropping but it's nice to finally see it in clear quality. Kinda underwhelming upon first viewing but I'm digging it more with each rewatch.

Nope.....Zoe looks horrible

Just wondering, what exactly looks horrible about her?

Compared to her look in the comic...doesn't look like her at all, other than green skin. They should have shot for the "Orion Girl" look, not the reptillian look.




As a fan of the DnA run of Guardians, and the Annhilation series of books, I'm meh on this. I hope it pulls through, but I'm not getting them up too high.

[Chostomo]

A better look at StarLord in new trailer

[Thundercracker]

Some new BTS photos:



New Nebula still:


New Star Lord stills:

[Thundercracker]

Official character descriptions:
source: Stitch Kingdom

Peter Quill aka Star-Lord:
An interstellar adventurer who was abducted from Earth at a young age. After recovering an ancient artifact, Quill must rally an unlikely team of cosmic misfits to prevent a powerful villain from destroying the galaxy.

Gamora: An orphan from an alien world who was raised by the mysterious Thanos to become the perfect weapon. As Thanos’ personal assassin, Gamora has earned a reputation as a formidable warrior. Gamora now seeks redemption for her past crimes.

Drax the Destroyer:
A physical brute who has a personal vendetta against Ronan, who killed his family. Now fueled by pure rage, Drax will stop at nothing to take his revenge on the most dangerous being in the galaxy.

Groot:
Descends from a race of walking flora and resembles a sentient tree. Despite his strange appearance and limited communication skills, Groot proves to be a valuable ally and a loyal friend—not only to his fellow bounty hunter Rocket but to the rest of the Guardians of the Galaxy as well.

Rocket:
A bounty hunter and mercenary whose mastery of weapons and battle tactics make him a formidable warrior, despite being a genetically altered, cybernetically enhanced, talking raccoon. The result of traumatic biological experimentation, Rocket is a genuine gun-toting badass and mechanical genius who has a huge chip on his shoulder.

Ronan:
A Kree radical, Ronan continues to fight an ancient war between his people and the Xandarians. Ronan has struck a bargain with the Machiavellian Thanos — retrieve a mysterious artifact, and in exchange Xandar will finally be eradicated. Ronan leads his army to hunt down Peter Quill and the rest of the Guardians of the Galaxy when they come between him and his genocidal goal.

Yondu:
An interstellar bandit who has a less-than-perfect paternal relationship with Peter Quill. As leader of the outlaws known as Ravagers, Yondu and his cohorts pillage their way through the galaxy, taking whatever they want for solely their own benefit.

Nebula:
A blue-skinned deadly assassin who is a loyal lieutenant in Ronan and Thanos’ employ. Her advanced skill set and cybernetic enhancements make her a valuable asset but her resentment of Thanos’ adoptive daughter Gamora may prove to be her Achilles heel.

Korath:
A powerful ally of the villainous Ronan, is a feared intergalactic hunter. Korath is a pursuer who is dedicated to the kill and focuses only on one thing—his target.

Rhomann Dey:
A Corpsman in the Nova Corps, the planet Xandar’s military force. Dey is a loyal and trusted officer but his by-the-book attitude takes a detour when he develops an unlikely rapport with Peter Quill.

Nova Prime Irani Rael:
Is in charge of Nova Corps operations throughout the galaxy. From her base of operations on Xandar, the principled and efficient Nova Prime leads her forces with confidence. She defines her mission above all to protect the citizens of Xandar and keep peace.

The Collector, aka Taneleer Tivan:
The obsessive keeper of the largest collection of interstellar fauna, relics and species in the galaxy. An enigmatic figure, The Collector operates out of a place in space aptly named Knowhere. When he encounters Peter Quill and his band, The Collector attempts to strike a dubious bargain.

[Thundercracker]

Theatrical Poster:




Second trailer hits Monday.

[SI]

The new trailer is a fucking winner

[Thundercracker]

^Here it is!

[flash width=560 height=315]http://www.youtube.com/v/j_9ny7cqcPE?version=3&hl=en_US[/flash]

[Thundercracker]

No official word from Marvel Studios yet but Latino Review is reporting that Josh Brolin will be the voice of Thanos. Variety and The Wrap have also echoed the same.

http://www.latino-review.com/news/exclu ... the-galaxy
http://www.thewrap.com/josh-brolin-join ... in-thanos/
http://variety.com/2014/film/news/josh- ... 201198891/

[Thundercracker]

Some cool details on Thanos' role in GotG and which Infinity Stone will feature next. Sounds like Thanos will kinda be like the Palpatine of the MCU.

How Much Thanos Will You See in Guardians of the Galaxy?

[spoil]Though Thanos didn't appear until the very end of The Avengers, Vulture has learned that he'll emerge in the first act of Guardians of the Galaxy, albeit via hologram. That will remain Thanos's preferred method of communication throughout the film — a move the Mad Titan likely cribbed from the equally enigmatic Emperor Palpatine in The Empire Strikes Back — though Thanos finally shows up in the purple flesh for a scene that also features Ronan the Accuser (Lee Pace) and Nebula (Karen Gillan), who do the Mad Titan's bidding and serve as the primary adversaries in Guardians. Still, though Thanos is only briefly glimpsed throughout Guardians, his presence is palpable throughout: Characters reference him often and fearfully, and he has familial ties to Gamora (Zoe Saldana), our green-skinned female lead.

The movie also presents another one of the Infinity Stones that Thanos is trying to retrieve to assemble his powerful Gauntlet. In the comics, there are six such items — gems that can manipulate Space, Mind, Soul, Reality, Time, and Power — and in the closing credits tag of Thor: The Dark World, the mysterious Collector (Benicio Del Toro) came into possession of one of them, the swirling Aether, and announced "One down, five to go." We've likely seen two other Infinity Stones in the Marvel cinematic universe thus far — the glowing Tesseract featured in Captain America and The Avengers, which corresponds to the Space Stone, and Loki's blue-hued, do-my-bidding scepter, which may be the Mind Stone — and Guardians offers a fourth, which Del Toro's character helpfully identifies as the Power Stone. (Fans had previously speculated that the Aether might be the Power Stone; it's now more likely that the mysterious, floating item from Thor: The Dark World will serve as the Reality Stone in this series.)

All in all, Guardians of the Galaxy should offer Marvel fans plenty of new developments and teases to pore over, though Thanos will retain his aura of mystery for a while longer: The purple beast will likely recede back into the shadows for a bit after Guardians, preferring instead to let the Avengers battle arch-foe Ultron (voiced by James Spader) in their second go-round Avengers: Age of Ultron, out next summer. After that, though, Iron Man, Thor, Black Widow, and the rest would be wise to fear what's coming. Thanos has a plan, and it's all beginning to come into focus. [/spoil]

[bearvomit]

BIIIIIG chunk of this movie just got plotted and spoiled over at Latino Review:
http://www.latino-review.com/news/exclusive-first-review-of-guardians-of-the-galaxy
[spoil][align=left]

Open on young Peter Quill. His mom is dying in the hospital. She gives him a present and keeps talking about his father being an angel. She dies and he runs outside, only to be abducted by an alien ship.

Flash forward twenty years and millions of miles to a desolate planet where Peter Quill, now Star Lord, relieves an abandoned temple of the silver orb you've seen in the trailers. Korath shows up with some Kree goons, but Quill escapes and heads to the home of the Nova Corp where he plans to fence the artifact for cash.

Meanwhile, Ronan the Accuser gets the news that Korath has failed in securing the orb and is none too pleased. Turns out he's promised to retrieve the orb for Thanos, who, in return, will destroy Xandar for him. The Mad Titan is so adamant about this orb that he even let Ronan borrow his two adopted daughters / augmented assassins, Gamora and Nebula.

Gamora heads out to Xandar to find Quill. Meanwhile, fortune hunters Rocket and Groot are on Xandar looking for a quick buck as they scan the locals for anyone with a bounty (Stan Lee cameo alert) when they come across Quill.

Peter attempts to sell the orb to an underhanded antiquities dealer, but when the trader finds out just who is after the object, he has second thoughts and kicks Peter out; and that's when Gamora, Rocket, and Groot decide to nab him. An elaborate chase sequence plays out through the streets of Xandar, but in the end, the Nova Corp spoils the fun and arrests everyone.

As Quill, Rocket, Groot, and Gamora head to The Kyln for lock up, two important things come to light: One, Peter was not working alone; he was supposed to share the orb's spoils with fellow space pirate Yondu who is livid and willing to fly across space for revenge and two, Ronan and Nebula have problems with authority; While visiting Thanos' flying throne rock, Ronan and Nebula have harsh words for the Mad Titan's right hand man, The Other, after he lectures them about showing respect for his master (things don't turn out well for one of them). This scene is the only one where Thanos is present (he pops up again later, but only on a screen/hologram for a few seconds). The Avatar of Death assures Ronan the plan is still in place and that Xandar is toast if he returns with the object.

Space prison is not pretty for the four future Guardians, especially Gamora; being the (adopted) daughter of Thanos has made her plenty of enemies, Drax the Destroyer chief among them. After Gamora gets cornered by vengeful prisoners, Drax stakes his claim as the one to kill her and almost does, but Gamora assures him that she has no love for daddy and that she'd love to take out her father more than anyone. Things calm down long enough for Rocket to devise a plan to escape, after which they'll head to the mysterious Collector who will pay enough for the orb that all of them can retire and go their own ways.

With Drax along for the ride, they manage to escape and head to the giant Celestial's cranium where The Collector talks all things infinite and gem-like, giving the Guardians a demonstration of the danger lurking within the orb: the purple gem of power. But things quickly turn south inside Knowhere as both Yondu and Ronan arrive looking for a fight.

I love Marvel movies, but I was scared to see this because I was worried it was going to be bad. The movie is in a tough position because it is full of unknown characters it has to introduce together (unlike every other MCU origin stories which only had to focus on showcasing one character), it's got some really goofy space/animal elements to balance, and it has to set up Thanos and the Infinity Gems which will obviously be a huge corner stone of the MCU. Not only that, but James Gunn is a risky bet. I loved Slither and his PG Porn series, but I was disappointed by Super and the Scooby movies. Mix both those elements together, a complicated movie that needs to bend in a lot of directions and a hit/miss writer and director, and what do you get?

A great movie, as it turns out. Granted, the effects aren't done and a lot can change between now and August, but if they keep on the track they're going, it will be solid. I don't want to spoil the fun, so here are few things that surprised me:

Unlike any other Marvel movie. A lot more comedic than expected.
Ronan, Nebula and Yondu look amazing.
The prison escape sequence is brilliant.
As expected, lots of neat easter eggs in The Collector's collection, including a cosmic puppy.
Rocket steals the show. Bradley Cooper's voice is perfect.
But that doesn't mean the others don't shine - they do, especially Drax. I was impressed with how well you knew most of the characters by the end.
The soundtrack plays a huge part, both in the setting tone and being part of the story.
You find out where Peter Quill and the team get their names.

Bottom line: it's not perfect. There are parts that drag, some action sequences that aren't as strong as one might hope, and some puzzling/unexplained motivations. The good news is that there's time to fix these things and, even if they don't solve everything, it'll still be a lot of fun. No matter what, I will absolutely be in line to go see it opening day. [/align] [/spoil]

[SI]

"Ain't no thing like me, 'cept me.."

[Thundercracker]

Character posters:

[Thundercracker]

UK Trailer with new footage (Gamora is heard for the first time and more of Rocket speaking as well.)

[flash width=560 height=315]http://www.youtube.com/v/3CqymRQ1uUU?version=3&hl=en_US[/flash]

[Thundercracker]

New Extended trailer:

[flash width=560 height=315]http://www.youtube.com/v/bEg9y9QliXc?version=3&hl=en_US[/flash]


I'm going on spoiler blackout till the film is out so I'm not gonna watch this one but it's supposed to have a lot of new footage including first shots of Yondu.

[Cryostar]

Say a "17 minute" trailer.....not bad. Eased some doubts.

[Thundercracker]

Yeah, I was very tempted to go to that IMAX preview but decided to just wait. All the reactions that I've read about it have been pretty positive though.

[Cryostar]

Wasn't very spoilery at all. Just the prison sequence.

My biggest worry was Saldana as Gamora. I'm ok with it after the sequences I saw.

[Thundercracker]

More character posters:

[bearvomit]

FULL movie spoiler:

[spoil][align=left]1988: Quill watches his mom die in a hospital. She mentions that his father is an "angel" and that he's coming to retrieve him soon. Quill gets abducted by aliens.

Now: Quill, part of a gang of thieves led by Yondu, finds a gem on a desolate planet where Ronan has also sent people to retrieve it. Quill escapes them and tries to pawn it on Xandar, but is refused when the buyer finds out Ronan is also looking for it. Thanos sends Gamora after Quill to retrieve it instead. Rocket and Groot are also on Xandar looking for bounties to collect when they see that Quill is wanted. All three chase Quill around Xandar before getting arrested by the Novas.

Ronan's introduction: he has a deep seeded hatred of the Xandarians and wants to undermine a peace treaty between them and the Kree. Thanos instructs him to use every means to acquire the gem, and in return he will destroy Xandar for him.

Quill and the gang meet up with Drax in the Kiln who intends to kill Gamora because she's an ally of Ronan, who had previously killed Drax's family. Gamora explains that she actually intended to betray Ronan and Thanos and sell the gem to Collector to buy her way away from Thanos. Rocket hatches a plan for them all to escape and they agree to work together to split the gem sale 4 ways (Drax doesn't want the money, he just wants Ronan dead, so he agrees to help for that). They escape the Kiln.

They go to Knowhere to meet Collector, who keeps them waiting. Drax and Rocket get drunk at a bar and do some gambling while Quill and Gamor exchange backstories - she educates Quill on just how horrible Ronan and Thanos really are and what they intend to use the gem for. Drax, Rocket and Groot get into a drunken brawl before leaving Drax in the street while they meet Collector with Gamora and Quill. Collector educates them on the nature and origin of the gem and it's counterparts. Collectors slave assistant tries to use the gem to free herself, but she can't wield it. It eats her alive, causing a violent explosion that destroys Collector's entire trophy room (Cosmo, in one of the display cases, get's set free and runs away!)

They attempt to flee with the gem, but return to street to discover that Drax in a drunken stupor alerted Ronan to their presence on Knowhere so that he could confront him. Ronan beats the shit out of him while the rest get chased by his soldiers. They lose the gem. They make a pact with Quills gang, the Ravagers, to try to retrieve it so they can get it out of Ronan's hands.

Ronan defies Thanos' authority and merges the gem with his hammer, making him even more OP. He threatens to kill Thanos if he tries to come after him. Nebula changes allegiances, saying that if Ronan can kill Thanos, he has her undying loyalty.

NOBODY LIKES THANOS.

The Guardians hatch a plan to return to Xandar and convince the Novas to help them make a stand against Ronan - suicide mission. Ronan attacks Xandar, the Novas make their stand with Rocket assisting, the rest of the Guardians infiltrate Ronan's ship to do battle and take the gem from him. Ronan wipes out thousands of Novas in one shot before the guardians take down his ship. Groot encases the wounded group in a cocoon, protecting them from the crash - Groot dies. After the crash they destroy Ronan's hammer, loosening the gem. Quill grabs it but it almost consumes him. Gamora and the gang grab on to him and their collective strength enables them to use the gem to destroy Ronan.

Xandar is saved. We learned that the Ravagers were sent to earth to bring Quill to his father, but Yondu opted to keep Quill for himself. We learn that Quill is part alien and that his alien physiology is what kept him alive while holding the gem - his father was someone really powerful, apparently. Rocket has a sprig of Groot in a pot with dirt, slowly growing back to normal. Drax pledges to kill Thanos, the real villain. They all fly off together. Baby Groot does a happy dance[/align].[/spoil]

[TroyObliX]

That sounds kinda dope I can pay to see that. Thanks for posting!

[bearvomit]

final end credits scene revealed with video! The funny one, not the serious one. And it's [spoil]HOWARD THE DUCK and COSMO THE DOG![/spoil]

http://www.underthegunreview.net/2014/07/30/guardians-of-the-galaxy-post-credits-sequence-leaks-online-and-its-hilarious/

[Bandersnatch]

Now watch as the world wide Internet makes an about-face and proclaims[spoil] Howard the Duck[/spoil] a classic and a misunderstood masterpiece...

[bearvomit]

Thanos!

[spoil][/spoil]

[CoGro]

Saw it tonight. Was great. Go see it.

Marvel has the formula. They crush these kinds of movies.

Funniest Marvel movie to date too. Literally laugh out loud at some parts.

[BlackCriminalGangster2050]

Seconded, I loved this movie. I hope Ep.VII is this flat-out fun.

If kids today don't fall in love with this movie and these characters, then kids today are fucked.

[Thundercracker]

Just got back. I loved it. Was a lot of fun. I think the most flattering compliment I could say about this movie is that it made me feel like a kid again. I had a big grin on my face during so many moments throughout this film. The characters were all funny and Rocket and Groot certainly stole the show and got many of the laughs in my theater. Quill was great too. I wish the final credit scene had been something a bit more substantial in regards to teasing future MCU developments but it certainly made the crowd go "wtf!"

Regarding Thanos:

[spoil][align=left]So far he's 0 for 3 on the Infinity Stones. The Tesseract is back in Asgard, The Orb is with the Nova Corp and The Aether is presumably still with the Collector. I think Thanos is gonna have to start taking matters into his own hands instead of relying on others to obtain the stones for him. As the saying goes, "good help is so hard to find."

One minor nitpick on the Mad Titan. Something about his appearance seemed off to me. Can't really put my finger on it but I suppose I just like how he looked at the end of Avengers better. I'm sure they'll refine it more whichever movie he shows up in next.[/align]
[/spoil]


Easter Eggs in the film:

[spoil]
[align=left]- Things in The Collector's display cases: A Chitauri, A Dark Elf, Cosmo the dog, Howard the duck, Warlock's cocoon (Some people mentioned that it is deflated in the post credit scene with Howard)
- During the origin of the Infinity Stones scene, a Celestial (Eson the Searcher) is shown. The Tesseract and Aether are also shown.
- Nathan Fillion is the large blue alien that gets his nostrils violated by Groot in prison
- Ronan's minions are not Kree but actually Sakaarans. Their ships are called Necrocrafts.
- Peter Serafinowicz, longtime character actor from Shaun of the Dead, Look Around You, Spaced, voice of Darth Maul in Star Wars, plays Garthan Saal, previously Nova Omega in the comics.
- Stan Lee talking to a girl on Xandar.
[/align]
[/spoil]

[Cryostar]

thanks for the easter eggs.


I swear, this film was just awesome. Every part.

I could nitpick, but no, the good just overwhelms everything.

[CoGro]

I had the same thought regarding Thanos looking a bit off. I think he might have worked better as a human actor under prosthetics than a CG character. I understand the limitations, but he looked a bit too much like a cartoon (big hands, etc).

I also didn't feel a real threat from Thanos. I thought he needed to kill Ronan after his defiance to prove his power.

[Thundercracker]

Was Thanos 100% CG in this? I'm pretty sure the first actor, Damion Poitier wore prosthetics for the Avengers shot. I thought they would have done the same with Josh Brolin. Looking at the scene of him again in GotG, I think it's the eyes and nose that throw it off for me. The eyes look a bit too human and his nose is too long, Thanos always had more of a short stubby nose in the comics sorta like Hulk's nose in Avengers. I agree that Thanos should have at least inflicted some hurt on Ronan just to show he was not to be fucked with. All that aside though, I still loved the scene and am giddy as hell that the whole Thanos/IG scenario is coming to fruition.

[spoil][/spoil]

[CoGro]

I hear you on the eyes and nose. It sure looks like the GotG Thanos is 100% CG whereas the Avengers one was an actor. Oddly enough, that version's face looked more naturally "alien." The eyes especially sold it for me. He certainly appears more menacing.


Thanos Avengers scene for reference: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5AYEohTJxd4